Airlines say airspace should have been closed

Ukraine bears responsibility for keeping its airspace open to flights like the doomed MH17, the International Air Transport Association says.

“Airlines depend on governments and air traffic control authorities to advise which airspace is available for flight, and they plan within those ­limits," IATA chief executive Tony Tyler said. “It is very similar to driving a car. If the road is open, you assume that it is safe. If it’s closed, you find an alternate route."

However, an industry source said in this case the “road" was more like a toll road, as the cash-strapped Ukrainian government was receiving overflight fees for each commercial flight above its territory and therefore had a financial incentive to keep its airspace open for as long as possible.

Three days before MH17 was shot down by a surface-to-air missile, Ukraine had raised the minimum altitude open for commercial flights over its eastern area to 32,000 feet, from 26,000 feet previously, after a military cargo jet was downed at 21,000 feet.

AFR
Source: NYT

Malaysia’s Minister of Transport Liow Tiong Lai on Saturday said the pilot had requested to fly at 35,000 feet over Ukraine’s airspace but was told by air traffic control to fly at 33,000 feet.

It is unclear, however, whether flying at a slightly higher altitude would have made any difference in this case, as the missile system that allegedly shot down MH17 can hit targets at an altitude of up to 75,000 feet. Despite the ongoing conflict with Ukraine, Russian national carrier Aeroflot flew over the area 86 times, while Singapore Airlines did so 75 times. Other carriers that used the airspace included Lufthansa, Thai Airways, Qatar Airways, Emirates and Etihad Airways. British Airways, Air France and Cathay Pacific were among the major carriers noticeably absent from that route.

No Australian carriers over eastern Ukraine

A graphic compiled by German magazine Der Spiegel with data from FlightRadar24 showed Malaysia Airlines was not alone in flying over eastern Ukrainian airspace in the week before MH17 was shot down.

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Qantas Airways
had not flown over eastern Ukraine since it shifted its European hub to Dubai last year, but it had still flown over Crimea and southern Ukraine until April, airline sources said.

Emirates president Tim Clark said MH17 had “changed everything" for his airline. “We will no longer rest on protocols we had in place that we honestly thought were safe," he told The Wall Street Journal.

Owen Zupp, the author of The Pilot’s Blog, said Malaysia Airlines and other operators had been within their rights to fly over eastern Ukraine given it had been deemed safe to fly by the IATA and the International Civil Aviation Org­anisation.

“However, some of the factors to be considered were undoubtedly the restricted airspace below the route, and the reason for that restriction, and the warnings that had been issued regarding operations in the region," he said.

“These warnings had prompted other airlines to avoid the Ukraine airspace. There is also the apparent shooting down of other aircraft in the area and the feasibility of flying alternate routes."

Mr Zupp said there were undoubtedly real threats to consider prior to the loss of MH17.

“That flight through the area may have been legal, but one must wonder whether it was prudent."

Malaysia Airlines operations director Captain Izham Ismail on Saturday questioned Qantas’s assertion that it had changed flight paths to avoid the area where MH17 was shot down, because he said the Australian carrier was not flying in the area.

A Qantas A380 pilot said he had been flying from Dubai to London over Crimea until the trouble started in the area and had then diverted to avoid the airspace altogether. “From Turkey, we track over Bulgaria then Romania, thus giving the area a wide berth," he said.

The pilot said flights from Singapore to London, which were abandoned when the European hub was switched to Dubai last year, had flown over eastern Ukraine.

Another source said Qantas had three flight paths from Dubai to London over the Black Sea until April, two of which were over Crimea and one over southern Ukraine. All three were abandoned due to the political turmoil in the region.

The US Federal Aviation Administration issued a notice to airmen in late April banning US carriers from flying over Crimea, the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.

The US advice would not have been binding for Qantas, but airlines typically take US and European bulletins on safety very seriously.

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority said no Australian operator flies over eastern Ukraine.

CASA advises Australian air operators and pilots considering operations in eastern European airspace to take into account all available safety notices and bulletins regarding flights in the Ukraine region.

“Particular attention should be given to notices issued by the United States Federal Aviation Administration and the European Aviation Safety Agency," CASA said.